Deep in the Heart of Texas
by EdanaBrietta
Summary: A little song-fic that thought up. Tim listens to his wife sing their baby to sleep and reminisces about their life together.


**Deep in the Heart of Texas  
>Rated<strong>: K+**  
>Disclaimer<strong>: I own nothing from Friday Night Lights. I only own the characters not from the show. (And the last two verses of the song here; I wrote those two. I did not write the previous verses.)

_The stars at night are big and bright  
>Deep in the heart of Texas <em>

Tim Riggins stood just inside the back door listening to his wife sing their baby to sleep. His wife was rocking their baby on the back portion of the wrap-around deck, sitting in the bench swing and singing one of his favorite songs to their child.

_The prairie sky is wide and high  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

He thought back to when he met his wife. He had just been hired as an assistant coach so that he could save up extra money to open up his own bar. Tim still drank like a fish and was trying to cut back so that he didn't drink up his merchandise when he did open the bar. But he had been having a hard time; he and Tyra had tried to meld their lives together but, like all the times before, it didn't work. They broke up, Tyra left the state, and he was left alone again.

_The sage in bloom is like perfume  
>Deep in the heart of Texas <em>

He was in the staff room on his first day, listening to the older teachers complain about the new English teacher and how she was rude for not sticking with tradition. Tim remembered the quiet that fell over the room when said teacher walked in and started pouring a cup of coffee. He looked up from his sandwich and felt his heart skip a beat.

_Reminds me of the one I love  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

She had sat at his table and set her coffee down then pulled the newspaper over to her. She must have felt his stare because she looked up at him and smiled. He swallowed, cleared his throat while wiping his hands on the front of his shirt, and then smiled back at her.

"Hi. I'm Tim Riggins. I'm an assistant coach here." He stuck out his hand.

She reached across the table and shook it, "I'm Emma Thomlinson. I'm the new English teacher."

_The coyotes wail along the trail  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

They were driving back from their first date. Tim had been telling her about his land and she had been impressed that he owned his own property. She had asked if she could see it, to which he of course responded with an immediate "Yes." It was still September so the sun was still in the sky as he pulled up to his newly finished home. Tim parked and helped her out of the passenger's seat then gently led her by the hand to the back porch. They watched the sun set over the expanse of Texas heartland.

"It's gorgeous, Tim. Absolutely breathtaking." He grunted in agreement but wasn't looking at the view. Instead his vision was trained on her profile. Off in the distance a coyote howled.

_The rabbits rush around the brush  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

Tim was making dinner for Emma. They had been together for two years and he felt it was time to take the next step. He had been prodding her to move in with him for the last year and she kept refusing. She was somewhat old fashioned that way.

He set the picnic table that was on the back porch and spaced candles on the railing all along the back side of the house. He heard her car pull up just as dinner was ready to come out of the oven. It was going to be a special night.

_The cowboys cry, "Ki yippee yi!"  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

Tim sat on the top step of the back porch with Emma between his knees. He had his arms wrapped around her shoulders, holding her back tightly against his chest. They both had a beer but Tim was taking it easy on the alcohol. He wanted to remember this night for the rest of his life.

He pulled away slightly to dig a small box out of his pocket and brought it out in front of Emma. "Emma, we've been together for a while now. I've shared everything I am with you: the good, the bad, the horrible, the things I'm ashamed of. You've never once made me feel like I'm worthless. In fact you've made me feel like I'm the most important man in the world; like I'm the happiest man in the world. I love you more than anything- more than Texas- and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to spend every day waking up to your beautiful face. Emma, will you marry me?"

She was quiet when she said, "Of course Tim. I love you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. Of course I'll marry you."

_The dogies bawl and bawl and bawl  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

Their wedding was small- or as small as possible. Emma's family flew in from Seattle, Billy and Mindy and their brood were all in attendance. Then Seven and Julie with their kids. Coach and Mrs. Taylor with the little Taylor. And of course Buddy Garrity, Lyla with her fiance, and the entire Dillon football team.

"Emma, you're the best thing that's happened to me. I promise to make you the happiest woman in the world. To tell you I love you every day and to kiss you goodnight every night. I swear I will provide for and be a great father to our children. I will love you until the day I die."

"Tim, you always say I'm the best thing that's ever happened to you but the truth is you're the best thing that has ever happened to me. I never thought I would find a man who could love me so fully and completely as you do. A man who could protect me, provide for me, be my partner in life, and who I could truly be myself with. I promise to support you always. To make sure that all your dreams come true. I will be a good mother to our children and to always let you know that you are my world."

It seemed like the entire town of Dillon heard when Tim and Emma were pronounced husband and wife. The football team hollered enough in celebration to wake the dead.

_Daddy and me, and baby makes three  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

"Damn you Tim Riggins, you did this to me! AHHH!" Emma had been in labor for thirty hours and it was time. Everyone was outside in the waiting room waiting for the birth of Tim and Emma's first child.

With one last push the baby was born and the room was filled with tiny wails. The doctor set their baby on Emma's stomach and Tim cut the umbilical cord before the baby was whisked away to be cleaned and warmed.

A little while later Tim went out into the waiting room, still in his scrubs, and smiled at everyone. "It's a girl!"

Billy and Mindy with their kids were the first ones to visit the new parents. Emma had the baby swaddled in her arms in a soft, pink blanket and Tim sat next to her on the bed with his arm around her shoulders while he stared down at his daughter. Emma beckoned Steven over to her and held the baby so the young boy could see. "Steven, meet your baby cousin Amy Quinn Riggins."

_The land we love is the land we're of  
>Deep in the heart of Texas<em>

Tim brought himself back to the present, pushed the screen door open, and walked to his little family. He sat next to Emma on the porch swing and brushed his hand across little Amy's forehead. The baby was fast asleep, listening to her mother's heartbeat and the Texas crickets. "I love you Emma."

Emma looked into his eyes and replied "I love you Tim." Tim felt a warmth spread from his heart, like he did every time he heard Emma say those words. He looked out on their land that was still barely lit from the almost set sun on the horizon. He felt complete- he and his family would live and thrive there in the land he loved: deep in the heart of Texas.


End file.
